I fear, my friend

Victor's interruption of his story reminds us of its fictive nature and
reintroduces the problem of belief that will in numerous ways dominate the
final pages of this first volume. It also quietly prepares us for a
major shift in the plot. In terms of the novel's characterization,
however, it might be read as Victor's way of reasserting an urbane control
over a narration (as well as a narrator) evidencing signs of dangerous
instability.